Coyotes: The Wild Becomes Urban

— Gregory McNamee is a contributing editor for Encyclopædia Britannica, for which he writes regularly on world geography, culture, and other topics. McNamee is also the author of many articles and books, includingBlue Mountains Far Away: Journeys into the American Wilderness (2000) and editor of The Desert Reader: A Literary Companion (2002). As a guest author for Advocacy for Animals, he writes this week on the increasingly frequent sightings of coyotes in urban environments around the United States.

Each night throughout the year, except in the season when they take to their dens, a pack of coyotes five or six strong crosses the little Arizona ranch where my wife and I make our home. They weave a circuitous path across the property, stopping to chortle when they catch sign of rabbit and howling and yipping as they wander. They steal any toys our dogs have been incautious enough to leave lying outside. Even though they usually return the toys a day or two later, it does not improve the dogs’ attitude toward the interlopers.

Fortunately for all but the coyotes, the dogs, at 70 pounds (30 kg), are too big to be a snack. Unfortunately for all concerned, the coyotes’ path on either side of our property is slowly being restricted as a desert metropolis grows ever closer, destroying habitat and filling apartments and suburban houses with newcomers who seem determined to erase any sign of what it is they’ve moved to: a desert, full of desert creatures and their survival-of-the-fittest ways.

Coyotes, of course, are not just desert creatures, though they stand at the center of the literatures of the North American deserts’ indigenous peoples. “Old Man Coyote,” as he’s often called in their stories, hasn’t changed much over the last four million years, according to biologists; evolving alongside the saber-toothed tiger and the giant cave bear, the coyote somehow resisted specialization. Instead of being painted into an evolutionary corner, as with its specialized peers, Canis latrans has emerged as an extraordinarily resilient creature.

Given a choice, coyotes prefer open grasslands full of the small game on which they feed. Given reality, they have become a “weed species” that thrives on disturbance—such as construction that displaces prey from safe burrows or roads that block animal migration routes and form cul-de-sacs to a predator’s advantage. Coyotes have learned to accommodate to nearly any environment, anyplace that they find themselves. The result is that coyotes are everywhere in North America—in every state, province, and territory of the United States, Mexico, and Canada.

But as elsewhere on Earth, the continent is increasingly overrun with humans, which almost inevitably means a loss of habitat for anything that is not human—coyotes included. Coyotes have therefore had to learn to live around us, a task made less onerous by virtue of our overflowing garbage cans and inviting pets.

In the past, coyotes tended to stay within sight of a sheltering arroyo, culvert, or grove while stealing over to make their raids on human habitations, lest the humans prove unfriendly. But now coyotes are beginning to turn up in unusual places. When a terrified young coyote, chased by crows, dashed into Seattle’s Henry M. Jackson Federal Building and got aboard an elevator in the late fall of 1997, it made national news. Over the next 10 years, though, such sightings became common. C. latrans seems not to mind our presence anymore, nor our technologies. A signal moment came when in 2002 a coyote wandered onto the tarmac of the Portland, Ore., airport and ambled through the flight lines, dodging luggage trains and transpacific freighters. When chased off, Wiley (as the airport’s animal-management officers called him) boarded the train that runs between the airport and downtown, curled up on a seat, and managed to settle down briefly before being lassoed and taken to a safe area.

Then there was the case of Hal, a one-year-old coyote who crossed from the Bronx into Manhattan over a railroad bridge and then apparently hitched a ride on a garbage truck to get to New York’s Central Park, where he had the run of the place for a couple of days in the early spring of 2006. A few urbanites were frightened by his arrival, but Mayor Michael Bloomberg put the matter in perspective: “Are New Yorkers in danger?” he asked rhetorically. “This is New York, and I would suggest that the coyote may have more problems than the rest of us.” Hal was eventually taken down by a tranquilizer dart. It was planned that he would be released into a New York state forest, but moments before his release he died of heartworm infestation and suspected ingestion of rat poison; it was also speculated that the stress of captivity and handling during the release contributed to his demise. Otis, the last coyote to visit Central Park, in 1999, is now an inmate at the Bronx Zoo.

In April 2007 another adventurous coyote curled up in a dairy case in a sandwich shop in downtown Chicago, smack between Michigan Avenue and State Street, a short walk from the Art Institute—a decidedly uncongenial setting, in other words, for almost any four-legged creature. Animal control officers hustled him away, checked him for rabies, and then did the right thing once again by returning him to a wilder place, in this instance a rural estate in the northern suburbs. Now that he’s seen the bright lights and big city, though, it’s anyone’s guess whether the coyote will stay away.

“His behavior is understandable,” says Marc Bekoff, a professor of biology at the University of Colorado and author of many books on animal behavior, including The Emotional Lives of Animals (2007). “I’m sure that coyote in Chicago, to name just one, had been displaced from its habitat. We’re seeing this because of necessity: the animals have to go somewhere, even where we are. And we’re seeing this because of habituation: the more they get used to us, the closer they’ll come to us.”

It’s worth noting that in all three of these cases, and indeed in almost all cases in which coyotes have made headlines, the protagonists have been youngsters. There’s a reason for that: if urban animals generally exhibit less fear of humans than do their rural counterparts, then the young among them are almost always less fearful still. “We have a word for it in biology,” says Bekoff, “and that’s neophilia, the love of new experiences. Young coyotes love to see new things, and they’re always up for an adventure.”

If they’ve ever been fed by humans—and, sin of sins, people do feed them, and not just by providing a steady supply of toy poodles and declawed house cats—then those adventures will include visits to where the food is. That may be a sandwich shop with an overflowing trash bin, a supermarket with poorly secured trash receptacles, or a backyard where a well-meaning animal lover has put out food especially for the local wildlife. And once accustomed to such places, coyotes have been known to develop a preference for including small dogs and house cats in their diet, hopping low walls and fences to get at their prey. Cases of attacks on small children, and even adults, have been documented, too; authorities estimate that ten such attacks occur each year throughout the United States. Though that number is vanishingly small as against the three million children bitten by dogs each year, there is evidence to suggest that coyotes are becoming more aggressive in their new circumstances, willing to stand their ground and fight rather than run.

In all events, these urban and suburban places are the coyote’s new habitat, and in the end, wending a path through a bustling city is ever more normal behavior for neophilic young coyotes—at least neophilic young coyotes whose wild homeland is disappearing and being replaced by one of streets, cars, and pets. “But saying that it’s normal,” says Bekoff, “doesn’t mean that it doesn’t blow my mind when I hear about coyotes getting on buses or trains or elevators. We’d better get used to it, though, because we’re likely to be seeing this sort of thing more and more.”

Books We Like

A Coyote Reader
William Bright (1993)

Coyote, the great North American trickster figure, is the star of linguist William Bright’s fine collection of traditional Native American stories and modern poems and meditations. Bright, who died in October 2006, had studied Coyote’s role in California Indian societies for four decades. Their stories tell of Coyote as a perennial loser and as a figure who plays by no rules: he impregnates his own daughter, steals from his friends, and causes the world endless trouble. Bright links the biological coyote to the cultural Coyote, and he introduces some fascinating ecological arcana while expanding the network of stories to include traditions outside California.

Here, for instance, is a story told by the Tohono O’odham of Arizona:

Eagle became angry at Coyote for howling so late into the night, and told Coyote he was going to steal his wife. Coyote was out hunting when Eagle returned a few days later and didn’t see Eagle take her away. Buzzard told Coyote, “I know where your wife is, and I’ll take you there. But from now on, whenever you kill something, leave part for me.” Buzzard then took Coyote into the sky to Eagle’s house. Coyote started to search the place, but became hungry. He went to a house where no one was home and found a sack of cornmeal. He was about to dig in when someone yelled, “Scat! Scat!” Coyote ran away with the sack in his teeth, and the scattered cornmeal became the stars.

There’s Coyote in a nutshell: thief, schemer, and victim to his own weaknesses, a creature who can’t quite win for losing but who can’t quite be brought down. Bright explains how Coyote came to take on these all-too-human characteristics and became so important a cultural figure while retaining something of an outlaw status.

No generation understands Coyote fully, the anthropologist Paul Radin once remarked, but no generation can live without him. Bright’s affection for Coyote has yielded a necessary book about a necessary creature.

79 Comments

The downtown coyote featured on the news was only one of several captured in the area within a few week period. I told my neighbors that I heard a coyote one evening near our building at the South end of Lincoln Park in Chicago; they said I was nuts. The local paper had an article in it the next week stating that a coyote had been captured at the corner across the street from our building. I was pretty sure I wasn’t nuts, I had noticed that the geese population in the park seemed to have thinned out a bit!

face it folks, coyote are here to stay. without proper management you city folk can expect to see more of your small dogs and cats being picked off in your back yard by coyotes. they are opportunistic feeders which explains their ability to adapt to urban environments.
when you animal huggers have your child bitten or mauled by one of these critters than you can just call me. i’ll take care of the problem and make some gas money at the same time by selling their fur….or maybe just skinning the sucker out and hanging it on my wall with all the others.

this was the best part of the article…
“Animal control officers hustled him away, checked him for rabies, and then did the right thing once again by returning him to a wilder place, in this instance a rural estate in the northern suburbs. Now that heâ€™s seen the bright lights and big city, though, itâ€™s anyoneâ€™s guess whether the coyote will stay away.”
first off…you can’t “check for rabies’ without killing the animal and doing a necropsy of the brain. and the comment about not coming back after seeing the bright lights of the big city…hee hee….he’ll be back. easy pickins for food…all them trash cans and rats…man, he’s in heaven. beats catchin mice and chasin rabbits.

I really love all animals and we people can be so careless by killing thease wonderful animals and I can’t belive all the thins we do not only to animals but to ourselvs if you think of it people abanden there babies animals don’t we reck ther home by bulding large citys we’v paloted our water that god has given us soon we wont have any water and its thoes who can make a diferane that dont im ashamed we people are own wors enemie.If you go on some surten websites you can see all of the animals we kill just for there hide or skull most animals are acoly way better perents then people are.Think how beutyful and free this planet would be without people us people are the most selfish cerwl beings on the earth.And for all thease stupid people that can make a diferance but chose to not well I will be the better person and in the futer i will make a differance.

I just wanted to say that I’m happy that there is coyote websites out here that aren’t talking about how to kill them. I have a coyote who was raised by a tree planter and then brought to me. (I run a wildlife center.) She now lives on my property and I find her just remarkable. I am lucky enough to have to chance to interact with her. She loves tummy scratches. but I find that watching her just be wild is the best thing ever. She shows me how she has learned to hunt mice and she shows me her favorite stash spots in our woods where she keeps her extra food. I hope she stays on my property for the rest of her life. She is an amazing creature.

Reply to Rachel. That is so cute!!! I am glad that there isnt webcites that are just about killing them, im glad i found this one. Killing animals for fun in HORRIBLE. I hate people who think its fun or funny to hurt animals. whats your coyote’s name it sounds so addorible!!!!!!!!!!!

why do you hypocrites even care most of you live in a city anyway plus who ever the tree huger is needs to go back to school and get a life. where all animals and we adapt. were just kinda “sparing” them. hunting is part of life they hunt us too. that’s my opinion and i killed 5 of them this summer. there sticking up is my basement. I’m not a redneck. kill em all.
P.S. learn how to type

I have chosen to live in the country and live with wild untamed animals.
While they are beautiful, they are wild animals.
They have killed my cats, stalked my foals,
chased and tried to entice my dogs away from the house. But as we invade nature, it still exists around us and we have to do what is necessary to protect ourselves and yet enjoy nature.
Live within the reality of what is wild and what is domestic.

i live out in the country and have seen many coyotes and i must say coyotes appear to be very integent to me
it was but a few hrs ago a coyote knockd some stuff over on my porch i was stund as stared out window at it she was unlike any other other id ever came across she stood there and stard face to face with me but flead the moment my brothers gf showd up (i muterd i caint blame you i thought she was gona eat the first time i saw her to)

bout the i live in Colorado and foxes and Coyotes are no strangers to me, if you feel the Coyote would be a problem build the fence higher and put the trash away, bring in the cat at night..those sorts of things..WE have been moveing into there territory for years. Liveing with them is totaly expected. i dont think they will leave the city, and there is no way Animal control can stop them. Unless they are desperate or “mad” they will try to avoid direct contact with us.

“P.S. learn how to type” was probably the best part of your entire post. I thought you were honestly being closed minded about this subject until I read that. The irony of telling others to do something you failed so miserably at puts a whole new satirical spin on everything you said.

More on-topic, I believe understanding and control is the best option. Both ‘kill them all’ and ‘so cute, don’t hurt them’ are wrong. Human populations have a HUGE impact on natural habitats, and in doing so we throw the whole balance of things off. That’s the key word, ‘balance’.

If we ‘kill them all’ we’ll throw more and/or different things out of balance. Take mice, for example. Coyotes are one of the few mouse predators that have been successful at living in urban environments. Remove the predators a the rodent population surges, which will then have to be dealt with.

On the other hand, if we take the ‘so cute, don’t hurt it’ route, we are simply turning a blind eye to a potentially very serious problem. As we interact more and more with feral animals, particularly larger predators, we will face the issue that predators eat things and often these ‘things’ are ‘ours’.

The best solution is to find the balance that is best for both humans and feral animals. Eradication of ‘pests’ can often lead to worse problems than the pests themselves, but if they’re not controlled properly a ‘pest’ can quickly become an ‘epidemic’. Sometimes you have to cull a population, and sometimes you have to cater to it. Studies like this help us to know when to do which.

My German Shepard alerted me this morning at 7:30am. I thought she saw more deer in the back yard, (we don’t live in the country, but a wooded suburb) we see deer all the time, even though a deer is too big for a coyote. I was amazed at seeing one so close (175 feet)

Wow! To the “teacher” who thinks he has the answers to all things great and small, “learn to type,” you say. Maybe you need to learn to live and let live. Here’s a tid bit for you, the more you kill those “pesty” coyotes, the more they breed and the larger the litters. So, there you go Mr. I know everything and you are so dumb. Your arrogance is pure ignorant. Why do you feel it necessary to post and boast about killing a living being? You will have to reap what you have done, dude. Believe me, when you kill for fun as you brag about now; one day the sun will rise only to bring to you a different awakening. Hopefully sooner than later.
I think we all can learn to live together (in a civilized manner) without the need to kill and create bad karma for ourselves.

Wow, I am amazed in more ways than I can say. Comments range from arrogant and self absorbed to too cute and cuddly. It would be unkind to go any further with comments regarding spelling, etc. That doesn’t mean a person is stupid, maybe just short on education.
Today I saw a huge Coyote prancing through my yard. There are woods near by but this is a reidential neighborhood. We have streets. But we also have wooded areas including a river. A perfect habitat for animals. We also have deer. I don’t think a coyote the size I saw would have much of a problem with a small deer. Plus I don’t think they hunt alone, but I really don’t know that.
Clearly these guys have lost their fear of humans. We live in a northern suburb in the Detroit, MI area. There are many critters big and small all about. So there is no scarcity of food for them, and we do not leave trash outside. Wven the deer have become so out of control that the cities near by have had to cull the herds.
We need to trap these animals and relocate them now rather than later. We have plenty of wooded areas in Michigan for this relocation. The longer we wait the more they imprint on humans. They don’t need to be killed. I don’t know of anyone who wants to go that route.
Let us not get all heated up and shoot from the hip. Let us use our intelligence to deal with this problem. Every time man interferes with nature, the result is a disaster. Inevitably, you trade one problem for another.
Think, people, think, consult professionals, then analyze, then react in a reasonable and honorable manner.
This issue isn’t going to resolve itself. As far as shooting; there are laws about discharging a firearm in our neighborhoods; as if that made any sense anyway. Thanks for reading my own personal opinion for what it’s worth.

These are what keep me up at night and stuff. in The Colony Texas none of our coyotes have been hit by cars. they live down the street from my house about 10 houses down in a forest and bob cats are around. people say keep small dogs inside cause peoples dogs go missing

I am from a heavily populated area in NJ and there are coyotes living there amongst the yuppies. Not many people are aware of it and nobody ever really sees them but they are there. Once all of the forest is turned to houses the coyote and bears will invade suburbia and out of fear they will probably be killed. There are never any injuries to people but that matters little. Fear is the dominant force and the children need to be safe so the animals must go.

Currently I have a slight problem with Coyotes living in my area. I have cats and well, they love to be outside. Unfortunately for them, I can’t let them out in fear of them getting eaten. I tell you what. I WILL kill to protect them. But who wouldn’t. My pets are part of my family.

Urbanites never cease to amaze me. Some of the responses are pathetic and a few are well thought out. Coyotes are predators. Given time and conditioning you will become prey. Young lady they do hunt in packs and I have seen them chase a full grown buck deer into a barbed wire fence, kill, and devour him in a few hours. You think they’re cute and cuddly, wait until you see the savage side of any wild animal. I live in rural Northeast Oregon, where coyotes, bobcats, bears, badgers, cougars, deer and elk are common. Predation is a natural part of a wild ecosystem. When food is plentiful the population grows to match the balance, mainly through larger litters. When food is scare the population decreases by smaller litters, predators becoming prey, and starvation. Life is not cute and fuzzy, like many would like to think. In reality it is stark and savage. While over the last 40 years my opinion has changed about killing any animal either for fun or for the resources of the meat, there are times, as these predators move into residential areas, that they must be controlled. They can carry diseases and parasites such as rabies, heartworm, fleas, ticks, and mange. They also will not hesitate to eat your pets, and given opportunity I don’t doubt that they would take on children. So please, take off the rose colored glasses and try to imagine not just cute and cuddly, but also the savage aggressor. There is a balance in all things. Sometimes we become the predator to protect the things we cherish. Let me put it this way “if a cute cuddly coyote was in your yard with your 3 year old child and it became aggressive, which one are you going to protect?”

This is for Matthew, If you did not know that there are rules and regulations on hunting different species.If there where not we would have either desimation or over population which would you rather have. Over population leads to disses,and starvation of that species. If you went to history class in high school you should know that human is top of the food chain and we have been hunting for food to servive since we were cave man.You are doing the same by going to the grocery store and buying a twenty dollar steak for dinner. You are getting product you dont know where it is from and how it has been processed at least I do when i kill a animal and clean and prepare it myself I dont trust others with my food that is just a personal preferance. I just go to the woods and hunt for food and it cost mabey a couple dollars. I kill coyotes because they kill my calves,lamb,fole,chicken,and house hold pets. They are over populated in my area in North Carolina and are considerd a nusince so if I have the chance, I kill them DEAD!!!

This is for Gus. I too am an apex predator. I choose what I will eat ( kill ) if absolutely necessary, however I think “man” should be merciful as God is. I don’t choose to go out and blow away living creatures for sport or whatever you want to name it. Cruelty is what it is. By the way, you kill calves, lambs, and chickens too, so that argument doesn’t work. Don’t be offended by this reply, because it isn’t meant to judge you, only togive you another hunter\gatherers input

I find all the responses interesting. I have a Coydog or labrador/coyote. He is sweet, smart, sometimes stubborn. All in all, a great dog. Not to mention beautiful with coyote looks and coloring.

As to the hunting vs wild topics, yes we need to hunt for food, however, most city dwellers do not. Yes, those who live on the outskirts track coyotes (that is how I got my pup), yes they can be a nusince, however, killing anything just because of what it is, not good. I live in a rural area, and no body around me would lay a hand on my pup even though he looks like a coyote. We all understand, we need to safeguard our stock as much as possible and only kill when needed.

BTW: Coyotes can take down deer, elk, sheep, moose, and your dogs and cats. They can be sneaky and just plain annoying. However, I know a few humans who fit that catagory too.

out walking the fields this rainy afternoon…the least time i exoected to come across on. Usually they are out in the early morning hrs here. Pup, as always, crossed under the fence by the river. I hear a whelping scared sound and rush to where I hear him. There sitting is a rather large coyote just watching my oup. No harm intended she/he let him pass back under the fence. We waited and the coyote poked his nis inder our side of the fence then backed of. We cut our way back down to the river and there running beside us was one magnificint (sic) animal keeping pace. Made my day. Needless to say i feel guilty for passing into what i call his territory now and wont walk along that wat ers edge again, just to leave him be. This is right here in Chicago/Hollywood Park. What abeauty he was.

Thanks to all for your posts. Normally my dogs are barking at turkeys, deer, coons, rabbits or whatever else is out there. This time it is a den of pups near my house driving my dogs crazy. My concern is two-fold. I have three daughters so as a parent the immediate thought was to get my gun and eliminate the problem. However being a God fearing person we as humans are to have dominion (not to be confused domination) over the animals. Therefore the post on â€œbalanceâ€ helped me put things in prospective. Thanks. With the world population growing faster and faster the consumption of natural resources has to be taken seriously or we humans will make a mess of things if not properly controlled. However I still have two problems, a den of pups that can cause problems for my family and what lesson â€œlasting memoryâ€ I need to leave my kids with.

I am glad I found this site. I watch a coyote all the time (6 months) behind a shopping center in Arlington TX. She seems ok but doesn’y have much space to live in. I can’t find anyone to rescue and relocate her. Mostly she sits in the sun or watches the cars on the highway. There are many businesses nearby and some fields and woods. The rest is all residential. I know someone could trap or kill her, but I cannot remove her so it’s sad. She belongs somewhere she can truly be freer.

This morning in a park in Okla. City I had the pleasure of seeing a beautiful young Coyote. I stopped and watched him and I made a howling noise. He stood still and watched me for several minutes and then went on about his way. My Native American soul was delighted! I have read the above comments with great interest. I have noted the gender differences and the few brave men who spoke with kindness and reason. One quote comes to mind;”Not to hurt our humble brethren the animals is our first duty to them, but to stop there is not enough. We have a higher mission-to be of service to then whenever they require it…If you have men who will exclude any of God’s creatures from the shelter of compassion and pity, you will have men who will deal likewise with their fellow men.” St. Francis

All these people who think these animals are cute should go live in the country where you could have a pack of 15 of them between you and your vehicle in the dark. That was me 2 days ago. My state has open hunting on these animals and I need advice that’s going to keep me safe, without calling in sick to work.

@Robert – dear Robert you pompous git, I know several 3 year olds I’d pick a coyote over, if I could save only one of them. You don’t have to choose between life and death,you can live WITH,at least in a sub/urban setting. All it takes is RESPECT for wild animals and a little THOUGHT and perhaps EFFORT to figure out how to keep the brats and your pets safe.

Reminds me of the hoopla in Toronto years back, people whining about raccoons getting their garbage…get a raccoon proof can for crying out loud, don’t need to kill raccoons to stop the gargage mess. Same argument with coyotes, adaptation goes both ways.

@ top of the food chain: I’m so sorry you can’t get dates (with women), but isn’t shooting things a tad drastic of a way to help your ego?

We moved to an area recently that gets coyotes – I’ve heard them quite close on one occasion, however this afternoon I was blessed with seeing one. I’m wondering now if it was a coyote or a wolf/coyote cross because he seemed to be more then 60lbs, perhaps 70lbs. Predominantly grey, not much red/russet in his colouring, mostly grey with black tipped hairs. So beautiful.

I see many posts describing humans as encroaching on coyote habitats, but here in New Hampshire it is very clear that the coyotes are encroaching on us. They are NOT a native species here, and their population is defintely exploding- much to the detriment of all other small wildlife in the area. They are bold, brazen, vicious and deadly to pets, and I feel I have to worry about a potential attack everytime I bring my dog outside. They are a problem, and as far as I’m concerned they don’t really belong.

I ran into a coyote in a wooded area by an industrial park in Newton, MA a number of years ago. I was walking my dog, who was oblivious and offleash. I saw the coyote look at the dog as if it were prey; I screamed the dog’s name and the coyote ran off.

Frankly, I was thrilled to see a wild animal so close to human occupation. We displaced all these animals and if they’re coming back, that’s great, we have to adjust accordingly. For instance, people complain about whether their cats can roam wild. Forget coyotes, where I live the cars will get those cats. If you leave your dog leashed in the yard, the odds are high some human will come along and mess with it, out of sadism. We have to protect our kids and animals from coyotes, but we also have to protect them from people. I say let the coyotes live. We’re more trouble than they are.

I wish I understood humans. A long time ago.. and you can check it out. Coyotes didn’t usually have long hair. PEOPLE who drop off their dogs in what are considered farm areas or out in the country are responsible for alot of this. They have bred until the image of a coyote is not what it used to be. If they have over populated we have only HUMANS to blame. If you don’t want your dog, take it to the humane society or shoot it and bury it. Do not burden an already overpopulated problem with yours!

The coyote that was caught in downtown Chicago was definately not released back into the wild. Supposedly it was “checked” for rabies…in order to do this the brain tissue of the coyote had to be checked for rabies. I know this because I used to have to do decapitations of animals for this purpose. So unless this coyote was particularly special and could live in the wild without a head this is a lie. This unfortunate animal, whos territory is being encroached upon by humans…and certainly NOT the other way around…was proably killed and had its head removed for no reason. Especially if it didn’t bite anyone.

why is the coyotye on the sub way of what ever that bus thingy is. but one thing i wonder is how did it get on to the bus thingy? thats all i had to ask and whay do people get mixed up with wolfs and coyotes because me and and a friend went on a snow mobile and we stoped at a top of a hill and we saw a coyote!!!!

What a great site!Very informative. I recently moved to the country in southern Indiana, From Chicago ,Ill. I was driving yesterday, and a coyote darted out in front of my car from some fields.I thought it was a coyote, but wasn’t sure . So decided to look up some photo’s. yeap, it see was. What a beautiful animal. I would never want kill one of these animals, but do have a concern about safety. Do I need to carry a gun when i walk around my property in the evening?We burn our trash here, but know wildlife does hang around the spots we use to burn. My husband always tells me to take a pistol with me when I walk at night, I always laugh at him. But now wondering if i should?There’s alot of dear, foxes, coons, possoms, and obviously coyote. What to do?I’m a city girl, tring to adapt 🙂

We recently moved into a private community only 8 miles from NYC. In addition to a Manhattan view from our deck we are treated to a pack of beautiful coyotes every now and then. We look forward to hearing them howl and seeing them run across the berm just a few feet from our back window.

We live in a very large Chicago suburb, Naperville, and hear them all the time. We see them very occasionally at dawn and dusk sometimes in our back yard (running awasy very quickly). I was lucky enough to get video of one catching voles at a conservation farm just a few blocks from my house.http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ru9hvhG4ETw
A pair of them were cleaning up on this sunny day and must have eaten 20-30 voles a piece in a about an hour’s time.

Animal rights activists need to realize that if people dont hunt animals will over-populate and then they will suffer to death from mou-nourishment.Its not bad if people use the animals for food, after all thats how god had people eat. Please relize that!!!!

i agree to topofthefoodchain.1, this is a wildlife peta type picture, my coyotes look nothing like this, they look like scrawny ugly nasty little monster wolves that eat you and kill, deserve it or not. 2, no, they will never leave us alone, they mauled my dog, we’ve never done anything to them, kill em all. their beautiful and part of Gods Creation, but their also killers that kill animals for food, nothing will change. 3, their animals, killing is in their blood, they are nothing like cute puppys, my final word for this is,”Defend yourself’s coyotes will kill for food and survival

cute, now we need the picture of that coyote eating my puppy’s flesh and ripping it to shreds. i took a picture of it, her neck is ripped both sides and is swollen, there is blood in her ear canal, thank the Lord she is living.

Past sightings/encounters with Coyotes in East Atlanta Village area of Atlanta, GA now one has been sighted in Candler Park neighborhood,3 mi further in-town. Very bad for small outdoor pets. Warnings to our neighbors to keep pets close to home.

Like the others say, “How many of you who call them cute and fluffy have seen one up close and not on the net or tv?” Bet they havent been south of NY let alone the Carolinas. They aren’t so cute when their populations are skyrocketing out of the roof and they all have mange or live in a place where they don’t grow that nice winter coat. Not to mention no matter how hard people try to domesticate them they always go feral before they become adults. If you’re gonna call it cute and want to save it GIVE THEM SPACE. They’re not pets, they will bite you, they aren’t always cute and fluffy, they have mange and burrs.

On the flip side I’m not saying go out and hunt them into extinction, but the reality of the matter is that their populations in many states are huge because there aren’t any predators to kill. So big in fact that in many states you aren’t required to report the killing of one. Game and wildlife departments have in the past required it and they use the money to maintain wildlife populations and parks, but there are just too many of them out there. They not only are competition for the food YOU eat (aka livestock), but they will start having problems if its not parasitic then problems with humans.

Really think of how many animals out there kill coyotes? Now think of the human population and how overpopulated its gotten. One or the other is going to have to go unless we figure out a GOOD balancing act.

In your comments on this site, you keep saying that no one is trying to see your side of it. But why do you make that assumption? Your comment here is full of assumptions: that we are city folk (one member of our small staff was raised on a farm), that we are tree huggers (please define the term), that we think all babies are cute (how is that relevant?). You are also arguing from the assumption that if changing how we treat animals means taking money out of a person’s pocket, then we shouldn’t change it. To many people, however, that is not a self-evident truth. Of course many people make their living exploiting animals and manipulating the natural world to maximise their profits—that’s human nature. That doesn’t make it right. And we are arguing that animals have as much right to live in this world as we do. How we accomplish that needs to be worked out, but at Advocacy for Animals, we don’t think that reaching for your shotgun should be the only response.

I love how so many people on here call coyotes cute. The “cute” picture on here is of a mounted coyote (one that has died somehow or another and whose skin has been affixed to a mold). The other picture, is of course of a real. That one does not look very cute to me. Many coyotes in the wild are infested with mange and other various diseases. They often look very skinny and nasty. Also, they stink in person. But I would not have expected any of those who have commented (save the few who actually deal with them) to have actually ever been around one in person. They judge our world from the safety of their own protected lives.

Daniel, to answer your question, I, the writer of the piece at the head of this long string of comments, live in a rural area on a small ranch in the desert, which is visited by a pack of coyotes nearly every night. Your “half their income” claim is not matched by reality, and your combative tone and presumptuousness pretty much guarantee that you won’t persuade anyone who is not already inclined to see things your way. Same goes for “Wake up and smell the coffee.” How do you know how people form their judgments?

BTW, “wake up”: that is a real coyote, not a mounted one. The photo was taken in Montana by a wildlife photographer. I found the original version of the photo, and the sky is visible in it. We cropped it.

Perhaps you have heard concerning the Epa and flea preventive drops? Why can’t everybody cared for felines just like we all do? It’ pretty disturbing just what some of those items are causing to our feline friends. Disturbing: Flea Products Killing Pets

I’m surprised that people find animal adaptability surprising. For instance I saw a fox scavenging litter in the car park of a burger bar in Colney, North London. It seemed pretty clear that the animal was a regular just doing its thing. As some customers buy more than they can eat then throw the surplus out of the window the fox was onto a good thing. As to cats, normally they can climb trees. If there are no trees make a cat ladder (just a plank with strips of 1″ x 1″ nailed on it) A cat will be able to climb this but a coyote won’t.

My Siames got out one night and was killed by a local coyote, but I know it has to eat like any animal so I hold no grudge against it. I live in the city by a wooded area so that is their habitat,too.
Thjat is more reason to keep animals inside or fenced in.

I’ve noticed how people don’t have any problem critisizing others for what they post on this comment section and others for that matter. Notice that everyone has their own experience and is allowed to have a point of view. My experience with coyotes, if it helps anyone here, is that they rarely desire to interact with humans. If they feel threated, then yes, just like us, they will attach. Mostly they will run away. I once had two coyotes attacking a deer and her fawn in my field. I ran out because I thought from the sounds there was someone screaming…the fawn. I ran to the site and found the fawn on thr ground bleeding to death. The two coyotes ran to the woods and the deer to the road. I held the fawn for a few minutes and realized that this was nature and I walked back to the house. Part of me was sad for the deer and her fawn, but the other part was upset that I intereacted. I got in the way of the coyotes getting their meal. This is a small example of what human intervention does to the natural process. It’s an awkward spot to be in. It seems like we don’t belong in our environment, because nature seems to take care of things in a balance. We seem to off set that balance. I just think it’s interesting…our placement.

I have a coyote cross that has parked by my front door for a week. I was told that they don’t breed with domestic animals but it appears that they do. I’ve started feeding him because he’s just so adorable. Are there any out there that want him?

i am a 14 yearold boy who lives in central florida in a small town. i regularly hunt and this afternoon i saw a large doe (female deer) and yearling (a young deer still realing on its mother). i passed them up like i have several times before because i can not kill a deer that is still reliant on its mother or a deer that has a baby ( some people do not feel this way as i have seen before. about 10 minutes later i saw a coyote wandering along the same trail, i figured it was trailing the yearling as i have seen before so when it presented me with a shot i took it. i hit it with the first shot in the rear leg (i feel that leaving a animal to suffer is cruel) so when it presented me with another shot i took one hitting it in the gut. i watched it closely to see if it would fall dead or not but unfortanitly it did not but walked out of view. i knew it would not last long so i got out of my stand and tried to find the body but i could not. i am going back into the woods tomorrrow morning to try to bag a deer or hog, so i will try again to find the coyote.

i also only hunt deer, turkey and hogs for meat, as i feel everyone should do.
i only shoot coyotes and bobcats because they kill deer fawns and turkeys, but if big enough they are stuffed/mounted to show the true beauty of the animals.
i have seen what coyotes and bobcats can do to a deer and turkey population if not managed.
i have also seen what these animals do when they have rabies and other sicknesses that cause them to loose there fear of humans, as i have been followed and approached on fourwheelers and on foot.
so good luck to you and dont forget to take care of gods animals,
zack

zack, your “management” of animal populations also results in death to animals. What, then, is the difference between you and a coyote?

You mention having certain standards as to which animals you will and will not kill, but, for example, you say you kill bobcats and coyotes who kill fawns and turkeys. Once the fawns are grown up, though, you also hunt them. I don’t think there is that much difference.

Deer hunters often claim they kill deer (“cull” them, “thin the herd,” etc.) because of deer overpopulation. They say they are helping the deer populations–that they’re concerned about the deer starving. This is convenient, because some people like hunting and they like deer meat. It’s interesting how some people kill coyotes for the sake of the deer, and then (later) the deer themselves, while others are only concerned with deer hunting. But the end result is a bunch of dead animals, depending on which kind of animal the hunter thinks is a problem at the moment. I’m pretty sure the deer and the predators “managed” themselves just fine before humans decided to get into the act.

I just wanted you all to know that all the designer brand gucci, armani, chanal and many more make fur coats and other stuff. People who make fur they rip animal skin while they are alive. Fur is death so if you guys love animals please do not wear real fur. If you want to know more about that how they are killing so many dogs, cats, coyotes and many more animals just for fashion. Please visit http://www.peta.org/ Remember we all together can change and we will change cruelty to animals. My reason to write this message is many people don’t know what’s happing to sweet litter animals. I just found out 7 days ago about how they make fur coats. I could not believe that people are that much cruel to animals just for fashion. Guys again please please visit http://www.peta.org/ so you can see with your eyes. We need to stop that cruel behavior to animals. They can’t protect themselves we need to.

I am a farmer in Pennsylvania with what amounts to subsistance plot, that has been in my family for multiple generations. Like most folks who farm small (less than 140 acres) plots, I must rely on income from other employment to get by. Still farming is in my blood, and I have been doing it in one capacity or another for more than 50 years. I can tell you that coyotes have become a real problem in the past ten years or so. Every spring I can count on finding one or more of my calves half eaten as a result of the coyotes. This sort of thing NEVER happened to me in the past, but is now a regular occurrence. The economic consequences are practically unbearable.

I’m not sure what brought this about, but it is NOT the result of overdevelopment, as there has been very little development in my neck of the woods. Actually my part of the state has lost population in the past 20 years.

I know that many urbanites could care less about the plight of the small farmer relative this issue. This is especially true for those who view wildlife issues through rose colored glasses. I guess attitudes will change only when coyotes start to have a significant impact on eliminating your beloved pets.

Dear D. Carson,
Thank you for your comment. The author of the piece can also respond if he likes—or not—but I would like to invite you to question your assumption that everyone who writes for this site is an “urbanite.” We often get comments on this site setting aside our judgments on animal issues because commenters assume that we are city dwellers and couldn’t possibly understand what it’s like to live with animals in a rural or less-developed setting. That is not, in fact, always the case.

overdevelopment is a problem. so is enabling a displaced animal to eat your pets and bite your kid. solutions: Slow down development (where I live, there are more houses than people who can afford to live in them). Watch your kids and pets (people leave their cats out at night and don’t supervise kids at play). If you see coyotes in an urban area, contact animal services or a rescue group trained to move the coyotes to an undeveloped area. Hunting coyotes AND sobbing over how cute and misunderstood they are both stupid human tricks.

They are lovely animals, but urbanite or not, the problem is with how many children we chose to have, not wether we appreciate the wilderness. I understand that the world can not have us humans doubling in population, no one, including humans will survive this. i will live in cities to the end of my days, but I am an only child, and I have raised my daughter to understand the importance of doing the same. All the recycling in the world is meaningless if you chose to have three kids. You are still ruining the planet. I am not. I am not killing these creatures, and those of you who have two or more kids…well you are.

you are so funny i sure hope you debate better in college because that was……………. well you should be able to knowing that u live on a ranch and should know about coyotes come on come pairing them to hitler and yes they are a nusence but they do play a vital role in the eco system of every day life. even though i dislike them as much as you coyotes keep rodent populations down considerable and if that where to get out of hand that would more than likely hurt live stock worse than coyotes for disease would spread quicker than wild fire so little brother think about that for a min …….

and yes their numbers should be kept at an eco friendly number but how would one know how or what that number should be so keep that all in mind even though they are bad in one way they do serve a purpose that is good for ranches also so putting down the occacinal coyote is all fine and dandy with me just dont put them all down becouse they do serve a purpose and the reason the go after live stock is that in that area the numbers are far greater than the rodents in which case the population needs to be thinned

We live on a corner with a fenced yard and no possible access to the yard as he gates are locked. So imagine my surprise when I discovered a HUGE scat pile on the lawn. It appeared to be from many days and we had no idea coyotes were in our yard at night, or early morning. We purchased a sensor sprinkler and thought that was working. Maybe it is to some degree, but today, three weeks after installing the sprinkler, we found a pile of scat on the side of the house, not near the sprinkler! There is no food that we leave out, no outdoor pets, a few neighborhood cats use to visit, haven’t seen them in a while, so don’t know what the attraction is to our yard. Trash is kept in the can in the garage until trash day, and then it is securely covered. I just don’t get it and I’m getting sick of cleaning up the scat presents! Any suggestions?

My home is on the edge of the Navajo Nation in northern Arizona, so coyotes and their lore are no strangers to me. In fact, my best friend is half coyote and half Queensland Heeler. I wanted to point out that coyotes in the west differ significantly in size and appearance from their eastern counterparts. I was shocked to see huge coyotes in Maine (locals believe that they have interbred with wolves coming down from Canada). Would be interested to hear your thoughts about this.